NAB 2018: Ericsson Brings UHD, HDR to MediaFirst

Ericsson used this week’s NAB Show to bow a variant of its cloud-based MediaFirst platform that supports Ultra HD and High Dynamic Range.  

The offering features and integrates Ericsson’s AVP System Encoder (supporting MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVC and HEV), the MediaFirst Content Processing system, and the MediaFirst Video Processing platform for VOD and live, linear TV.  

Ericsson didn’t announce any initial takers for the UHD-capable version of MediaFirst, but Bell Canada recently inked a deal with Ericsson for an upgraded TV platform that will support multiscreen video services.  

RELATED: Bell Canada Rings Up Ericsson for Upgraded TV Platform 

Bell Canada has been using Mediaroom, the IPTV platform Ericsson acquired from Microsoft in the fall of 2013. MediaFirst is a next-gen, cloud-powered IP video platform from Ericsson that covers TVs as well as web browsers, smartphones and tablets and targets MVPDs as well as OTT service providers. Other announced MediaFirst customers include J:COM, Japan's largest cable operator, and Canada's SaskTel.  

In late January, Ericsson announced that One Equity Partners would acquire a majority stake in Ericsson's Media division, which includes Mediaroom and MediaFirst.